After six seasons at the helm of the St. John’s basketball program, Norm Roberts is out.
Chris Monasch, Director of Athletics, announced the split on Friday, March 15. Though Roberts leaves behind a losing record, Monasch was quick to praise his former coach for bringing a measure of respectability back to the program.
“Coach Roberts took over a very challenging situation and has advanced our program in many respects,” said Monasch. “We appreciate the class and integrity he exhibited in his six years at St. John’s.”
Roberts leaves St. John’s with an overall record of 81-101; his best season coming this past year as the Red Storm posted a record of 17-16, while receiving their first invitation to the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) since 2002-2003.
The Johnnies went on to lose to Memphis in the opening round of this year’s NIT.
Monasch stressed that while the basketball program has grown much stronger from where it was before Roberts began, the recruiting success was not translating into success on the court.
“His student-athletes always represented the university in ways consistent with our values and he has significantly improved the pool of basketball talent since he arrived,” said Monasch. “Along with demanding that our program is run with integrity and that our student-athletes achieve academically and in the community, we expect a high level of success on the court consistent with our tradition.”
The historic St. John’s basketball program boasts 11 consensus All-Americans, 59 NBA Draft choices and 45 players that have scored 1,000 points or more. Unfortunately for Roberts, a Queens native, his Johnnies did not add to those lofty numbers.
“Having grown up in Queens, I never could have imagined being afforded the opportunity to coach at one of the most prestigious basketball programs in the country,” said Roberts. “I do believe the program is in a much stronger position than when I arrived, and is poised to take a major step up both in the Big East and nationally. This is due to the hard work of our coaching staff and our players, and I wish this group of young men continued success in the future.”
The 2010-2011 Red Storm will return with five starters, 13 letter winners and 94 percent of its scoring from this past season.
